READING fans can look forward to a packed programme of events at the fourth annual Ryedale Book Festival.

This year’s event will take place on Saturday and Sunday October 10 and 11, with organisers already putting together another varied, vibrant and exciting range of activities that should appeal to everyone who likes books.

Some of the names announced so far include Charlie and Lola creator Lauren Child, who will be at The Old Lodge, performance poet and BBC Radio 4 comedian John Hegley entertaining an audience at The Milton Rooms, and South Yorkshire artist Su Blackwell, who will create the most exquisite sculptures from books.

Also part of the programme this year will be Clare Morpurgo, daughter of Sir Allen Lane, the founder of Penguin Books, and wife of writer Michael Morpurgo, who attended last year’s festival.

Michael said: “The best literary festivals reach out and bring in new readers, and they do it inventively and with fierce determination. Ryedale Book Festival is doing this wonderfully well.”

Sarah Tyson, festival director, said: “We are thrilled that Michael and Clare will be coming back to Malton in October. Clare’s talk during a lovely lunch at the Talbot Hotel will be a very special event.

” Work on the annual school story project has also started with artists Tabitha Grove and Libby Pearson visiting local schools with their workshop designed to help the children’s creative writing process.

Pupils at St Benedict’s School, in Ampleforth, started off the story that is now touring the district and will visit 10 schools before being designed and published by local gift company IF. The printed picture story book, supported by illustrator Quentin Blake, will be printed and on sale at the festival in October.

Other outreach projects planned for 2015 include a journalism competition in partnership with Malton Museum, a Poetry Day, a meet-the-author event with Lauren Child and a GCSE project based around A Christmas Carol.

Sarah said the committee were also appealing for volunteers to meet the growing demands of an evolving festival.

“There is a place for anyone with a little or a lot of time to give, volunteers can be involved year round or just on the festival weekend in October,” she said.

Sarah said they were recently delighted to find out that, provided the festival can raise some money locally, it has qualified for nearly £10,000 Lottery money from the Arts Council.

The money has been pledged in order to strengthen the infrastructure and secure the legacy of the festival.

Festival chairman Sally Dobson said: “These are exciting times for Ryedale Book Festival.

“We have been growing year on year and having secured funding from Arts Council England, we have high hopes for this year.

“We have always had excellent local support, especially from local businesses, and we could just do with a few more helping hands to share the workload.”

Anyone interested in finding out more about the festival is invited to attend the Ryedale Book Festival annual meeting at 6pm on Wednesday, June 3, in Malton library.

For more information on the festival, email events@ryedalebookfestival.com or go to the website ryedalebookfestival.com